INAUGURATION 2013: Strength—and a Little Bit of Diversity

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:58 pm By Kathy Schiffer

Giglio Is Persona Non Grata After His Christianity Is Exposed The Obama Administration wants next week’s inauguration to be “a celebration of strength and diversity.” That’s apparently the reason that Pastor Louis Giglio, originally invited to offer a prayer at the Inauguration on January 21, is no longer on the program. I was pleased to read of Giglio’s invitation to offer the prayer. Having a Christian leader in this role helped to ameliorate Obama’s surprise invitation to Myrlie Evers-Williams to... Read more

Smarter Than God? Tweaking the Bible Is All the Rage

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:58 pm By Kathy Schiffer

What do atheists, Piers Morgan and a federal judge have in common? All claim to know better than God about what He should have said in the Scriptures. AMENDING THE BIBLE’S STANCE ON GAY RIGHTS British journalist and talk show host Piers Morgan, whose show can be seen on CNN, made headlines recently for his campaign against the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which permits law-abiding citizens to possess handguns. Now, though, Morgan has offered a reprimand to God... Read more

ORDINARY TIME: Living Life in the Slow Lane

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:58 pm By Kathy Schiffer

Ah, we Catholics love a party! And what is the liturgical calendar, if not a great excuse to put on our finery and enjoy a feast, celebrating the hallmarks of our faith with explosions of color and light and song! During the Christmas season, giddy with the news of the Christ Child’s birth, we decorate our churches and our homes with fragrant greenery, golden baubles, heady red poinsettias, and twinkling lights to rival the stars in the winter sky. Likewise,... Read more

In the President’s Own Words

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:58 pm By Kathy Schiffer

Forty years, folks. For forty years, America has not protected its most vulnerable. Thank you to Blackstone Films for this excellent reminder. Read more

Hey, Look! Point, Click and Pray With Our Bishops

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:58 pm By Kathy Schiffer

HEY LOOKIE! Over on the right side of this page! There is an ad featured prominently on Patheos this week that I’m particularly proud to support. It’s an invitation from your bishop—from all of the bishops of the United States, in fact—to stand with them in prayer to end abortion. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops have called upon all people of faith to participate in “Nine Days of Prayer, Penance and Pilgrimage” from January 19-27, 2013. Since Roe v.... Read more

Protesters Strip in St. Peter’s Square; Pope Stays on Target

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:58 pm By Kathy Schiffer

Four women from the Ukrainian feminist group Femen shed their shirts and bared their breasts during Pope Benedict’s Sunday audience in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday, January 13; but the pontiff remained unruffled, delivering a beautiful reflection on the sacrament of Baptism. The women had painted “In Gay We Trust” and “Shut Up” on their bodies, protesting against the Catholic Church and its stand on homosexuality. Their protest was cut short, though; as Vatican security officials led the four away,... Read more

THE POETRY OF FAITH: Once Upon a Time, Belief Was Normative

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:58 pm By Kathy Schiffer

Doesn’t it sometimes seem that you were meant to live in a different age? That the world has turned and somehow, you didn’t get the memo? I ran across an article on “The Poetry of Faith” which appeared in Time Magazine. Published on July 1, 1946, it offered a thumbs-up review of a new anthology of Catholic poetry by the British poet Alfred Noyes. “The greatest writing in human history,” said Time, “is religious writing.” Oh, how I ache for my... Read more

Where’s Francis?! Three-Ton Underwater Statue Goes Missing

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:58 pm By Kathy Schiffer

St. Francis of Paola was a humble man of God, a hermit who spent six years in a remote sea cave near Paola, on Italy’s southern seacoast. He founded the Hermits of St. Francis of Assisi, a contemplative order approved by the Holy See in 1474. In the year 1492, the year Christopher Columbus discovered the New World, Francis renamed his community the “Minims”—“the least”—because he wanted humility to be the hallmark of his friars. He is the patron saint... Read more

If You Need a FROG or a FOGLIGHT…

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:58 pm By Kathy Schiffer

If you need a FROG…. or a FOGLIGHT…. If you need a STICKER…. Or a framed FIREMAN’S SLICKER…. If you want a PLATTER…. Or some PENCILS…. If you yearn for GREEN FLOWERS…. Or COLORFUL BIRDS…. ... Read more

T.S. Eliot Reads "Journey of the Magi"

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:58 pm By Kathy Schiffer

On January 6, we remember the Magi— those wise kings from the East who visited the infant Jesus, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. American-born playwright, literary critic and poet T. S. Eliot wrote his famous poem “Journey of the Magi” in 1927, following his conversion to Christianity and his confirmation in the Church of England. The dramatic monologue tells the story from the viewpoint of one of the magi. Tired and discouraged, the magus complains that the journey... Read more